Strange bedfellows
My lack of sleep is draining me, but I do see the light at the end of this week’s tunnel. The hospital bed arrived this afternoon. It is a relief to have this convenient, almost necessary piece of equipment at home, all set up, but I sense resistance on Gilly’s part. Who would blame him?
In speaking with Sema this afternoon, she alerted me to what I like to call a gadget (since she loves to collect gadgets). She mentioned that I should get an egg crate foam liner for the bed to prevent bed sores. I immediately called the O.T. to ask where I could get such a thing, and she directed me to Walmart. Yaron, by coincidence was shopping there for me at that very moment, so I called him and had him pick one up. The O.T. ordered a special mattress designed to prevent bed sores in the meantime.
Later on, while speaking to Jerry, I discovered that such a mattress was probably available. What seemed like moments later, Cynthia and Aviyam arrived with a state of the art special mattress. Solutions appear at my doorstep without even being requested. The foam liner is not necessary any longer; I will try to return it tomorrow. Walmart is great about accepting returns, even when packages have been opened (I had already laid it out on the bed).
The delivery men (from Will-Aide; the CSSS orders equipment from them) arrived with the bed, as I mentioned and a chair. The nurse had mentioned a special transfer chair, so that is what I expected, to transfer Gilly from the chair to the transfer bench. Instead, it was a transport wheel chair, identical to the one I rented from the local pharmacy, this time with foot support! I sent Yaron off to return the rented transport wheel chair (why pay a rental fee now that I have one in hand), but I still wanted to understand what was going on. The men said I’d need to call Will-Aide; they do not deal with mistakes. I called and explained that I was supposed to receive the transfer chair, and I was told to call the CSSS because the mistake is on their end. I finally heard from the O.T., only to discover that Will-Aide is out of transfer chairs, and she knew I needed the transport chair, so she went ahead and requested it, now that they had one in complete with foot support. Well, that explained what I thought was a mistake.
In speaking with her further, I discovered that the transfer chair we await delivery of has a slide that will transport Gilly directly into the tub, as opposed to transferring him to the transfer bench. I cannot picture exactly how this new device will operate, but I’m sure it will be useful. Moving Gilly from the wheel chair, parked at the doorway of the bathroom, over to the transfer bench set up across the bathtub is a little bit tricky. It’s only a couple of feet, I suppose, but he cannot really walk, nor hold himself up, so it is a challenge. For now, we’ll make do with what we’ve got.
Gilly is resisting the idea of getting into that hospital bed, and I’m plum tuckered out, so I may not wait out his change of heart this evening. The transition may take some getting used to for us both. Tomorrow I will have a bed set up in the same room so I can sleep in there and keep him company for portions of the night, as long as he seems to need this support. We’ll make it as cozy and warm as possible, and hopefully he will enjoy the perks. I know I will find care giving a whole lot easier once he is firmly ensconced in his new digs. It is the end of an era, though, and hard for us both to swallow.
I completed my last day of teaching today, and tomorrow I will conduct my final observations in the field. It will be easier to work out my schedule, because I can do the large majority of work from home. I will use Elizabeth’s services for at least 1/3 of the time she usually comes in for next week, and see how it goes with me as primary caregiver, supported by Tamara and Yaron, whose schedules free up at about the same time (Yaron’s completely and Tamara’s partially). He deserves to be cared for by loved ones as much as possible. The 14 hours of CSSS care will help enormously…we’ll take one day at a time, as they say.
In speaking with Sema this afternoon, she alerted me to what I like to call a gadget (since she loves to collect gadgets). She mentioned that I should get an egg crate foam liner for the bed to prevent bed sores. I immediately called the O.T. to ask where I could get such a thing, and she directed me to Walmart. Yaron, by coincidence was shopping there for me at that very moment, so I called him and had him pick one up. The O.T. ordered a special mattress designed to prevent bed sores in the meantime.
Later on, while speaking to Jerry, I discovered that such a mattress was probably available. What seemed like moments later, Cynthia and Aviyam arrived with a state of the art special mattress. Solutions appear at my doorstep without even being requested. The foam liner is not necessary any longer; I will try to return it tomorrow. Walmart is great about accepting returns, even when packages have been opened (I had already laid it out on the bed).
The delivery men (from Will-Aide; the CSSS orders equipment from them) arrived with the bed, as I mentioned and a chair. The nurse had mentioned a special transfer chair, so that is what I expected, to transfer Gilly from the chair to the transfer bench. Instead, it was a transport wheel chair, identical to the one I rented from the local pharmacy, this time with foot support! I sent Yaron off to return the rented transport wheel chair (why pay a rental fee now that I have one in hand), but I still wanted to understand what was going on. The men said I’d need to call Will-Aide; they do not deal with mistakes. I called and explained that I was supposed to receive the transfer chair, and I was told to call the CSSS because the mistake is on their end. I finally heard from the O.T., only to discover that Will-Aide is out of transfer chairs, and she knew I needed the transport chair, so she went ahead and requested it, now that they had one in complete with foot support. Well, that explained what I thought was a mistake.
In speaking with her further, I discovered that the transfer chair we await delivery of has a slide that will transport Gilly directly into the tub, as opposed to transferring him to the transfer bench. I cannot picture exactly how this new device will operate, but I’m sure it will be useful. Moving Gilly from the wheel chair, parked at the doorway of the bathroom, over to the transfer bench set up across the bathtub is a little bit tricky. It’s only a couple of feet, I suppose, but he cannot really walk, nor hold himself up, so it is a challenge. For now, we’ll make do with what we’ve got.
Gilly is resisting the idea of getting into that hospital bed, and I’m plum tuckered out, so I may not wait out his change of heart this evening. The transition may take some getting used to for us both. Tomorrow I will have a bed set up in the same room so I can sleep in there and keep him company for portions of the night, as long as he seems to need this support. We’ll make it as cozy and warm as possible, and hopefully he will enjoy the perks. I know I will find care giving a whole lot easier once he is firmly ensconced in his new digs. It is the end of an era, though, and hard for us both to swallow.
I completed my last day of teaching today, and tomorrow I will conduct my final observations in the field. It will be easier to work out my schedule, because I can do the large majority of work from home. I will use Elizabeth’s services for at least 1/3 of the time she usually comes in for next week, and see how it goes with me as primary caregiver, supported by Tamara and Yaron, whose schedules free up at about the same time (Yaron’s completely and Tamara’s partially). He deserves to be cared for by loved ones as much as possible. The 14 hours of CSSS care will help enormously…we’ll take one day at a time, as they say.
posted by Gilly at 9:15 PM
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